Search

Below are details taken directly from Consumer Reports, but the basics are this:

80% of the population suffers from Back pain (so yes there is a lucky 20% who don’t), and out of those who suffer, 88% claim it is re-occurring

Chiropractic is rated the best choice in care options by consumers with back pain

Massage and Exercise Rehab is also rated very effective

Medications and Drugs were only 22% effective!

Dr. LeGault offers two of the top choices for the most effective care in Sewickley and the surrounding area:

Chiropractic

Exercise rehabilitation and counseling

Call today and end the suffering. Discover YOUR 100%.

412-259-3828

“About 80 percent of the adults in the U.S. have been bothered by back pain at some point. The Consumer Reports Health Ratings Center recently surveyed more than 14,000 subscribers who experienced lower-back pain in the past year but never had back surgery. More than half said the pain severely limited their daily routine for a week or longer, and 88 percent said it recurred throughout the year.

Lower-back pain disrupts many aspects of life. In our survey, 46 percent said that it interfered with their sleep, 31 percent reported that it thwarted their efforts to maintain a healthy weight, and 24 percent said that it hampered their sex life.

Where to go for treatment?

A surprising number of the lower-back-pain sufferers we surveyed said they were disappointed with what their primary-care doctor could do to help. Although many of our respondents who saw a primary-care doctor left dissatisfied, primary-care doctors can write prescriptions and give referrals for hands-on treatments that might be covered by health insurance. When back pain goes on and on, many people go to see a primary-care doctor. While this visit may help rule out any serious underlying disease, a prescription based solution affects long-term quality of life.

Who helped the most?

The percentage of people highly (completely or very) satisfied with their back-pain treatments and advice varied by practitioner visited.

Professional —————– Highly satisfied

Chiropractor 59%

Physical therapist 55%

Acupuncturist 53%

Physician, specialist 44%

Physician, primary-care doctor 34%

Source: Consumer Reports Health Ratings Center

Patients with lower-back pain are faced with a confusing list of options. Our survey respondents tried an average of five or six different treatments over the course of just a year. We asked them to rate a comprehensive list of remedies (available to subscribers) and had enough data to rate 23 treatments. We analyzed the medical evidence for each and came up with recommendations and cautions. Here are some highlights from our survey findings:

Spinal injections (available to subscribers) were rated just below chiropractic treatments by those who took our survey. Fifty-one percent of the respondents found them to be very helpful, although the techniques their doctors used varied. Prescription medications (available to subscribers), which one-third of our respondents said they took, were rated as beneficial by 45 percent of them. Almost 70 percent said they took an over-the-counter medication, but only 22 percent said the drugs were very helpful. Fifty-eight percent told us they wished they had done more exercising to strengthen their backs.Although lower-back pain is the fifth most common reason people go to a doctor, 35 percent of the people in our survey said they had never consulted a professional. Most of them had severely limiting pain for less than a week. Many of those with more prolonged pain who didn’t see a health-care professional said,”… it was because of cost concerns or because they did not think professional care could help. “

Doctors of Chiropractic are often concerned with a patient’s leg length inequality (LLI) or discrepancy. LLI is a direct portrayal of neuromuscular dysfunction exhibited by the body. The inequality is usually due to a functional imbalance in the body’s kinetic chain causing neurological insult. Due to the nature of LLI, it takes time to correct because the muscles and ligaments may be chronically sprained/strained. Pay close attention to the picture shown below, as it depicts how spinal/extraspinal dysfunctions can cause LLI.

Various causes may exist and are not limited to the following:

(1). Subluxation/dysfunction of the hip-joint: causing compensatory alterations by the joint and muscles that impact on the joint.

(2). Sacroiliac joint subluxation/dysfunctions

(3). The iliosacral joint subluxation/dysfunction

(4). Shortened hamstring muscles.

(5). Occipito-Atlantal joint subluxation/dysfunction

(6). Sacral dysfunction (nutation or counter nutation)

(7). Plus many more…

A recent study evaluated 3,000 adults aged 50 to 79 who either had knee pain or risk factors for knee osteoarthritis as a part of the Multi Centre Osteoarthritis Study (MOST). Subjects were reassessed after a 30-month period and it was found that arthritic changes in the knee were most significant in individuals with leg length inequality. The shorter leg being more affected. The researchers claim that arthritis in the knee is linked to the common trait of having one leg that is longer than the other. The CDC estimates that 27 million adults had osteoarthritis in 2005 and An estimated 294,000 children under age 18 have some form of arthritis or rheumatic condition; this represents approximately 1 in every 250 children in the U.S. http://www.cdc.gov/arthritis/data_statistics/arthritis_related_stats.htm

Preventive measures should be taken before the onset of chronic and painful arthritis. Preventative measures include specific chiropractic adjustments to re-align involved areas, soft tissue therapies to equalize muscle balance, and dietary/exercise programs. From receiving chiropractic adjustments, a joint regains optimal neurological function. Orthotics should only be sought after maximal chiropractic improvement has been ascertained or over the course of chiropractic care in order to make minor alterations.